On The Bladed Edge
by Burningbeast
Summary: My life changed in the span of 24 hours. I accepted a program that could change my life forever. Or ruin it completely.
1. Chapter 1

**I'm getting out if a very, very dark patch in my life. Writing is my way of healing, so I'm trying again. I want to be able to get my stories out there. This is going to be a tad bit weird because, well I have no clue what I'm doing right now. I'll just wing it like I always do. Start the program!**

That morning, that day, the old Lucius Veren died, and a new one was born. Everything that had made me who I was. Every insult, every taunt, they were my weapons. My fear, my cowardice, became my armor. They gave me my edge, my confidence, even my new life. Let's go back a bit; to that day, the one when it all changed.

I sat down in the subway, sliding into the plastic seat. The world seemed to slow down. Glowing blue, as it came to a halt. White light engulfed my vision as life itself shattered around me.

My eyes snapped open to an unfamiliar place, my body feeling lighter and faster. This new world was ruined and decayed. All the people who hustled into the now empty subway car, were gone. I launched myself out of the stationary vehicle and caught a shimmer of gold in my reflection. I turned just to stop dead. A rounded golden helmet and glowing purple eyes stared back at me. "This is just a dream right? This can't be real… I must have dozed off on the train…" After smacking myself with my sharp, metallic fingers. I realized that this face was certainly my own. Golden armor coated my body. My limbs were thinner that normal but seemed denser than any normal human being's. Knife-like extensions emerged from beneath my forearms and ended a foot from my hands. Blades almost like ice skates were attached to the bottom of my feet. Above me, I saw two blue bars with a and a timer counting down from 1800. The bar on the right had the words, "Golden Edge"; and the equivalent said, "Navy Smash".

"What the hell is going on?" I asked the ruined world around me. A rather high voice answered, "This is a duel… silly boy," he chuckled softly, "I'm gonna need to kill you now. No hard feelings." I didn't have anymore time to ask questions, as, I was currently being attacked by a navy blue robot with gigantic hammer. His large weapon slammed down next to me. I spun out of control and fell, I'd forgotten that I had new skate things on my feet. The hammer swung at me and I tried to roll out of the way; but, unfortunately, not fast enough. I let out a scream as my arm was abruptly forced from its safety in my shoulder socket. The pain quickly faded; however, there was no time to register that, as hammer flattened my skull… Naturally, putting me out of my misery.

The world reverted back to normal speed as I whimpered. My head was ringing like someone used it as a bell.

"What the hell was that?" I muttered. Then it hit me. Yesterday, the white haired kid, the one who offered me that "life changing" program. He installed some kind of malware garbage. Time to give him a piece of my mind.

"What did you do?" I snarled. The white haired kid just laughed.

"Lost a duel, then, I take it? Nevermind, I'll explain. Just say these words, okay?"

"Fine..."

"Burst Link."

I rolled my eyes and went with it. "Burst Link."

The world slowly came to a halt as everything glowed blue. I turned around, and I was face to face with myself. My body was glowing blue like everything else. I whipped back around to see that the white haired kid was smiling, standing next to a replica of sorts. "This is the Accelerated World. Right now we're standing in a 3D hologram generated by the cameras everywhere around the world, the probably illegal and morally questionable 'Brain Burst' program, and the neurolinker sitting around your neck. Right now we are currently thinking one thousand times faster than the real world so one second out there is about 16.67 minutes in here you can use this to plan out your actions, do late assignments, heck you can even take naps in here. Each time you say those words you use up one Burst Point. Once your points hit zero, Brain Burst and any related memories will vanish. Any questions?"

"Let me get this straight. An illegal and morally questionable program speeds up our brainwaves. Then, sends us to a hacked 3D rendering of our surroundings, to do whatever we want when we say two words; but, if we do this too much Brain Burst and all memories concerning it disappear forever? What does this have to do with this morning, that 'duel'?"

"You took that surprisingly well. Most people, me included, panicked for a solid 20 minutes. But, I'll show you what duels are."

He seemingly opened a tab on his neurolinker, then white light engulfed me as everything shattered, once again.

The world reformed into a thick forest. I looked at the bars above me. One said my name, Golden Edge, the other, "Winter Renegade".

"Impressive, I've never seen a gold avatar before. Lighter construction, obviously very fast, and skates on your feet?" A voice asks incredulously. Snow-white armor with silver highlights stood in front of me. Glowing blue eyes stared from holes in the white faceplate, silver blades gripped in each hand.

"What in the world is going on? Where are we? Who are you?" I demanded slipping into a fighting position, managing not to fall over this time.

"I completely forgot to introduce myself. I'm Wayne, But in this world I'm Winter Renegade. Right now we're in a duel. Last man standing wins 10 points, you die you lose 10 points. Each arena's look is randomly generated, the actual terrain is biased on your real world location. My job right now is to make sure you can actually fight, en garde, my friend." Wayne said shifting into position, blades at the ready. Silver met gold in a shower of sparks as I brought up my blades to block his strike. I turn and skate out of there. My body reflexively slipping into old motions. White filled my vision as Winter Renegade landed right in front of me. "Why did you leave me!?" He jokingly sobbed. My arm flashed upwards leaving a razor-thin cut across his chest. I lost self-control as I danced around the renegade in a blur of blades. I stop my dance of death and look and my opponent. Thin cuts coat his body, dozens along his armor, dripping sparks.

"Impressive. That 60 hit combo took out about 10% of my health. I knew picked a good one. I'm going to wrap this up and tell you a bit more in the real world." Winter Renegade said as he took his swords to his neck and severed his head from his body.

The world grinded back into normal speed. "That brought back memories. Ah, I remember the day I was brought into the fold. Good times, good times." The white haired kid reminisced "I digress. My name is Wayne Ashton, my avatar is named Winter Renegade. Welcome to the world of the Burst Linker."

"To repeat what I have already said, What in the world is going on?!" Wayne sighed, "Last night, do you remember having a nightmare, one that pulled up every mental scar or wound you have ever had A nightmare that made you almost want to die? That was Brain Burst going through your mind and analyzing you. It found all your fears, insecurities, hopes, and dreams. Then it made your avatar, Golden Edge. Brain Burst has you face yourself by using your problems as weapons."

Something dawned on me, "That's why you said 'morally questionable' to describe it. You weren't talking about the fighting but the program rummaging through you head."

"Correct Edge. That is what I meant."

"Please call me Lucius,"

"Meet me here later today after school," Wayne said showing me an address "See you then, Lucius." He walked off, and for a moment, I could have sworn I didn't see the silhouette of a 14 year old boy; but, the shadow of Winter Renegade fixed to his heels. I checked my watch and panicked. Class started five seconds ago. I cursed my normal body, my avatar was so much faster and cooler. Alas, that's the way the cookie crumbles.

**Later That Day**

I looked at the address then at the building in front of me. I chuckled to myself and stepped inside. The roller rink was dimly lit. Wayne was standing by the counter two pairs of roller blades in his hands. "Never thought you would show up."

"Seriously, I know how to skate. Why bring me here?"

"Just for practice and fun." I grabbed the smaller pair of skates and strapped them on. Wayne tugged me onto the floor. "Show me what you've got." I rolled away from him. Instinct taking over as I ran through the motions. My body appling more speed. Around and around I went, old tricks and techniques flashing through my head. I added even more speed to my velocity as I flew off the ramp. The backflip starting before I realized it. The skates hit the wood of the rink as I made a textbook landing. Skidding to a halt next to the shocked Wayne I asked, "Was that good enough?" Five minutes later I was spinning in circles around slightly green kid with white hair who had made the mistake of buying me a pair of roller blades. "Thank you Wayne, I owe you how much?" I asked lifting up one of my feet while I balance on the other foot. "Just stop. Please, I'm getting dizzy." I smiled as I remove the wheels from my feet. The world slowed to a blue tinged halt as white light filled my shattering vision.

My avatar's gold armor coated my body and I looked at the name of my opponent. If Navy Smash wanted another challenge, I'd give him one.

**It feels wonderful to get this story off my chest. I've been planning this for a while and don't worry, this story is far from over. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A quick note from FrozenFury176: (A.K.A. the person who gives this idea life)**

**I would like to say that, even though we have never actually met, we already know each other. Through these stories I get to express myself to you, the audience. Anyway, I should probably tell you a little bit about me. I hate writing, but I love editing. It's weird, but it gives me a chance to put my own twist on someone else's work. I do so much work on these stories for you guys. Burningbeast is also a****slow writer, but it's fine. You have no idea how hard he has to work in real life. He is a dedicated and busy person. I don't have much to say other than that though.****Thanks, FrozenFury.**

**Well said Frozen, well said. A true poet lies within your mind and soul. You, man, are the true hero of this story. Enough of the mushie feels though, now back to our regularly scheduled story, brought to you by the internet.**

The world reformed fittingly, to a ruined city. My avatar's golden armor surrounded my body as I readied myself. Navy Smash lifted his hammer and seemed to smile under his dark blue mask.

"I'm a little pressed for points right now noob. Just let me kill you. Alright? I'll make it quick." The blue avatar ran at me. I did the dumb thing and went for him. I covered the distance in no time flat and swung my arm blades. A thin cut reached from my opponent's collarbone to his hip. The hammer hit me from out of nowhere. I slammed into the wall of a building across the street. My health was down 20% with one hit. Smash, however, was sitting at pretty much max health. Things weren't looking good. I was going to die if I didn't do something fast. Unpeeling myself from the wall, I readied myself once again, blades flashing in the light. I rushed the hammer-wielding man. I started my bladed dance. The avatar kept trying to back away, only to be met with cold metal. I checked his health momentarily. 99%, 98%, 97%, the blue bar slowly grinding down in a shower of sparks. However, a green gauge was rapidly filling up beneath the extremely slowly dwindling blue. Navy Smash somehow managed to pull away and called out, "Screw you noob. I don't want to have to do this... But you deserve it, Navy Hypersonic Hammer!!!"

Jets of fire launched out of the back of his weapon, spinning him around at an unreasonable amount of speed. Time seemed to slow down as Smash leaped into the air and brought down the pain. The hammer slammed into me, breaking through any form of armor I had. Every nerve, ripping apart, making me want to die. The hammer was still shooting out flames, pushing me even further into the decaying street. Finally, after an eternity of pain, the special move ended. Me at the bottom of a crater at 0.45% health. It was a reflection of my life. Beaten, almost dead, and laying in the dust, utterly defeated. Words floated through my head. _"Your avatar may not have the best armor or do the most damage. But you have something to make up for it. That is the way Brain Burst and real life works. You can't give up. Never stop fighting, ever!"_ Wayne seemed to speak in my head. His words from before. Unsteadily, I climbed to my feet, pushing myself to the limit.

"Haven't had enough yet? Almost no one can survive a hit from my special move. Guess metal-colored types are more resilient than I thought." The hammer wielder chuckled once again, in that soft tone. I decided to execute an action I've done only once before.

"Golden Retaliation!" I roared, my blades engulfed themselves with golden fire. Smash brought up his hammer to block an attack that would go right through it, almost like nothing was there. Slashing at him, I poured all of my energy into that attack. Each of my strikes cutting through him, like a hot knife through an overused metaphor. After ten fiery slices, my special move came to an end. I checked each of our health bars. He was at 56%, and I was at almost 33%. Wait 33%?! My special move must have some sort of vampiric buff, epic… I wasn't the only one who noticed this turn of events.

"How is this happening? That's not possible, no one can regain health. I'll teach you a lesson!" Rage may have given the blue avatar more power, but it made his accuracy next to nonexistent. I ducked under the robot's swings, responding with swipes of my own. I was winning for once in my life. It felt wonderful. I was scoring dozens of tiny hits barly noticeable on their own; but together, you would die of a thousand cuts. 46%, 45%, 44%, every one of my strikes slowly bringing him down. The hammer blindsided me. Smashing into the side of my face. I was launched like a rag doll. I slammed through an entire building. Pain laced through me, my bones would have broken in real life. I wanted to just lay there, give up. But I knew I couldn't. If I give up, he'll get what he wanted. I couldn't let that happen. I dragged myself to my feet, disoriented, to say the least.

"I'm not giving up. I'll take him down, even if it kills me." I whispered more to myself than anything. I leaped at the blue avatar flipping in mid-air. Through sheer luck, my kick landed. My bladed foot sliding through his face. Sparks generated from gold meeting blue. I landed unsteadily on bladed feet. Me at 12%, him at 43%, the clock at 126 and decreasing fast. Any solid hit and I die. A resounding crash pulls me from my reverie. The weapon slammed down a hair's breadth next to me. Lunging, I ran my blade along the inside of Navy's armor, the wound bleeding sparks. I registered my over-extension in a split second. Before I do; however, the hammer blew through me. Pain ripped through my back as I lost the duel.

The world refocused around me as pain from invisible wounds blossomed across my nerves. "Breathe, the phantom pain will quickly fade," Wayne's words registered as pain meds drop into my palm. "A Burst Linker's best friend. Never leave home without them. You did good, kid. You did good. He will certainly be hurting for awhile; I can promise you that."

"But I lost though…"

Wayne smiles that everything will be fine smile.

"Strength isn't defined by the number of victories you have won. By the time I learned this it was too late I'd already done irreversible things. At some point you will become who you truly are. Come on, in the immortal words of Mario: 'Let's a go!' "

I roll my eyes at the random quote but respond with one of my own, "After all, 'It's dangerous to go alone' "

I stand up and look at the real world around me, spotting the shape of Golden Edge as my shadow. Smiling I walk on knowing things would be better. Turning away from Wayne I travel home awaiting what was to come.

**That night.**

I slide through my small three room apartment door. Glancing down I spot the dog sleeping at the end of the hallway.

_'Looks like he fell asleep,waiting for me.'_ The thought tugs a smile to my lips. Carefully sneaking past the slumbering beast I head to my workshop/bedroom. I push bits and bobs to the side. Gently taking out my tools I set to work.

**Sorry for not updating in awhile life sucks. I have no excuse. But in other news. I have 2 hidden references to the source material in here. If you spot it good for you, if you don't it doesn't matter. I put them in just for kicks. See ya next time,**

**Burningbeast**


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm so sorry for not updating in so long. I'm sorry but I do have a chapter 3 for the people who read this. Please enjoy.**

Barking ripped me from my unintended snooze. Moving my face from its small pool of drool on my desk while sitting up. My clock said it was 5:43. I stared at Sir Henry. "Fine I'll get up." Pushing the padded desk chair back I rose to my feet, hands leaving my half-baked idea turned realized contraption. I begun affixing the pipes beneath my forearms, PVC extending a foot from my hands. Clamps lock into place on my forearms. Handles gripped in sweaty palms. The mock blades were finished. Ready for training. I carefully unclip and set down my creation. "Want to go outside?" The corgi freaked out and sprinted down the hall, faster than you would think a canine of that size could move. Walking out of my room I stopped in the hall. Looking at a family photo hanging on the wall. Two people standing around a small child. A man with thick black hair and dark eyes. A woman with long blonde locks and a grin that would make the Cheshire Cat envious. The child looked a bit like his parents, Brown almost black hair, dark eyes and a sarcastic look on his face. A tiny ball of black fur clutched protectively in his arms.

Times changed though. And I grew up. Henry was now a large ball of fluff, and my parents were gone on some business trip to an obscure city in Asia. I ran my old 'caretaker' out of the house the first chance I had. She couldn't even do her job right.

I quickly remedied that however. Smiling at the fond memory of dye, permanent markers, and sleeping pills… I didn't kill her but she may have felt that way. Let's just say that I gave her a makeover… Snapping a leash onto the seemingly caffeinated doggo, I stepped out into the sunlight.

Walking at a leisurely pace saying hello to a shorter kid walking his cat. Yes, you read right. Walking a feline. What can I say? People are weird. Taking a left at right street, going right along left avenue, following the fork at spoon street. The park gate loomed in front of me. I tugged the gate open to let my 'expresso can' run. He was off like a rocket. Collapsing onto a bench, I opened up an e-book about a fantasy world. Becoming lost to the words forming an entirely new reality. About an hour into the book I come across this passage:

_He turned the world slowly into the realm of Avalon, the dimension of true reality. All life twisting and distorting into the manifestation of their soul. X Calibur laughed as everything finally succumbed to their sins and virtues. The world had become a beautiful and horrible place. One full of Light wrapped in Shadow, and Darkness in the wake of the Light. He looked at the world in a whole way. The truth had been revealed. And nothing would ever be the same._

My eyes widened as I look at the book in a new light. Life becoming a representation of their soul. That sounded oddly familiar… Why did that premise sound so awkward… Oh wait, that's my life now. Hahaha, I hate irony. It is the bane of my existence some times. I realized how I must look to the rest of the world. A pale, thin, sleep deprived 15 year old grinning like a madman and laughing to himself. I probably look crazy. With a slightly less unhinged grin, I sprung to my feet. I'd let them stare. What did I care about how they think. Sometimes I wished I could just leave this screwed up world of mine behind. Then it hits me like a hypersonic hammer. "Good enough time for it anyway. I've been wanting to do this for a while. Burst Link," I whispered.

The world slammed to a blue tinged halt. I stared into my own eyes with a smile. A blue glow lightly coated everything like dew in the morning. Before I get too sidetracked in my thoughts I pull myself back into the moment. To why I accelerated. Left slash, diagonal swipe, kick, right slash, decapitate. The motions getting more and more familiar with more practice in the accelerated world. The best part, an hour in here translates to about 4ish seconds out there. All in all, the perfect place to do about anything. I continued my practice. The only downside was that my virtual body lacked the blades of my avatar. But, it didn't matter right now. I had to get better. I needed to…

**12 seconds later...**

I sighed. "Burst Out." The command sent me to the world, grinding back into normal speed. I had gotten some practice in. My strikes were less sloppy, my rhythm was easier to get into, and I felt better. I let out a long piercing whistle. The black furry bullet rams into my kneecaps. Henry seems to vibrate in place with excitement. I clipped the leash back into place. As we walked back to the apartment I felt a person's gaze burning into my back. Once more, I whispered, "Burst Link," the world, once again; seemed to take a day off.

In the frozen, blue world, I spun around looking for the eyes glaring into my soul. I calmly walked between pedestrians. This program, this Brain Burst thing. What an amazing application. I see my target, A young woman with long dark hair. She was looking straight at my frozen form with the same look of someone staring at an interesting bug they found on the sidewalk. Next to her was a boy barely older than 12, his greyish skin looking a size to small, being pulled tight over his skull. A long thin scar reaching from his right temple to his chin. Both sporting identical unhinged grins. The smiles sent shivers down my spine and reminded me that I can't stay accelerated forever. At some point I would have to be back in normal time. With that thought words pour from my lips. "Burst Out."

Life around me sped up in a riot of sound. However the split second after I slow down, the world shattered around me. Once more, I was in my golden avatar. I looked up at the health bars. Cursed Flush. Who are they, and what do they want with me?

**Next chapter promises a fight with this new Cursed Flush person. Who are they? And who were the two people staring at Lucius on the street? Answers next time, and hopefully without the long hiatus.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Well, I'm not dead. I had forgotten about this for a while. Then Frozen is like, I just like wrote a whole chapter. When I check I'm shocked. It was actually pretty good. Then I added stuff onto that and here we are. Also I'm trying something new. When you see words in quotes "like this" between paragraphs. That means that that is a song that goes with the section. Roll that film!**

I tensed up as I took in the arena. Snow drifts piled up around the fjord. Ice covered lakes glimmered off in the distance. Ribbons of green, blue, and violet filled the moonlit sky.

A figure covered in a ragged dark purple, almost black, cloak, was hovering before me. Small, paper thin, rectangular objects orbited their body. The hood they wore slid off slowly, bearing a skull. Their skeletal hands rose from the folds of the tattered garment. With a satanic smile Cursed Flush pushed his arms outward. The rectangles stopped their orbit and surged forward. With a quick slash, I relieved each object of its bottom half. As the rectangles fell I realized that they were actually playing cards. I skated forward, my blades glinting in the light of the aurora. Cursed Flush reached into his cloak and drew out two thick objects. With a slight toss, he threw the decks into the air. The cards inside the decks floated into the air, defying gravity. I went in for a lunge; but, the cards parried my strike. The meeting of the two generated sparks. Left slash, right swipe, thrust. Each attack was countered. I was getting nowhere. Anything I did would result in another failure. I skated back, out of immediate range. But then I heard a distorted voice, full of static, "NiGhTmArE ImPrIsOnMeNt,"

With a shower of sparks his special move bar grinded down. Cards poured from his cloak. An endless stream wrapped around the purple avatar. With a single movement, each of the cards were hanging in place. Simultaneously they each slammed into the snow, sending a plume of glittering powder into the air. As the snow settled, walls erupted around me. They came from out of nowhere. I start to panic. Golden Edge needs room to move in order to activate, which meant I was stuck… I was trapped with no hope of escape.

The timer read 1146, 1145, 1144. Each passing second leaving me more and more desperate. I swore the walls were slowly starting to close in around me. What started out as a 20 foot box was slowly shrinking. I wasn't in a good spot.

Sadness enveloped me. I was a failure. Even when I tried so hard to actually do something right, I fucked it up. Regardless of how hard I try everything spirals out of my control. I was a dumpster fire, a train wreck. A small ember of hope that tries to keep its meager flame burning; but it finally succumbs to the cold. Leaving me in a state of icy nothingness. The miserable existence that I tried so hard to escape from. My body locked up and I didn't move another inch…

For a split second, I black out.

My eyes open to a featureless room. I look around me at the limitless expanse. In front of me knelt a figure. Their arms chained behind them. I walk towards the person and stifle a gasp. What was in front of me was impossible. One half of their body was coated in golden armour, scuffed and dented. An amethyst eye dark, lacking it's vibrant glow. The other side of him was worse. Dark hair fell limp over their face. An uncovered torso was poketmarked with bruises, burns, bullet holes, and bleeding wounds. He was beaten within an inch of his life. He struggles febally, and lifts his head. I stagger back. Dark brown and amethyst eyes stare back at me. The twisted parody of Golden Edge and Lucius Veren looks right into my soul. I look at myself, him looking how I felt. With myself as my witness I make a promise. Never again would I let that happen to me. I would never give up hope. Never would I stop fighting back. Never. A smile graces the Lucius/Golden hybrid's face. He lets out a laugh as their wounds fade away. Scars melting away as dents buff themselves from gold. With a roar he shatters the chains binding him. Rising from the ground he looks right into my eyes and nods. "Blade Shift." He whispers as the room fades away and I wake up.

**"I'm Alive" Shinedown**

I thought my life was over and I had nothing else to live for, but that was completely wrong. Brain Burst is only a program and I had people to meet and care for. If I lost Brain Burst, I would lose my memories related to it too. That meant Golden Edge and Wayne would be gone forever. From nothing, a spark, the faint light of hope. I was just starting out. I couldn't give up now.

With walls closing in around me I make my move. I skate up the wall, leaping once I hit the top. I go into a backflip. Slowly tumbling through the air. My thoughts move back to my interaction with myself and his only spoken words. They had sounded like an ability name. I disregard that thought for a later date. I had a duel to win.

I thought of Winter Renegade, Wayne's avatar. What would he do in a situation like this? I am smart enough, but quick thinking is what really mattered in this moment. I recalled, that in one of our practice sessions, Wayne slid under me when I went for a head-on attack. That got me thinking… What if I dug beneath and popped out to attack Cursed Flush?

I listened for his quiet hum. Once I found it, I got to work. The timer was at 462 by the time I was below him. It was a better moment than ever to launch an attack. I jumped up as hard as I could, blades whispering through the air. I broke through the snow but I didn't see him immediately. I turned and saw his dark cloak. I went for a kick instead of my blades. The decision could have cost me a lot if I messed up, but I made contact and that caught him off-guard. After all you expect a person with razor sharp blades to use those. He was knocked to the ground, and it was time to finish him with my special attack.

"Golden Retaliation!" I stab into his downed form. My flaming blade cleaved through him like paper. Cursed Flush was defeated. His weak body twitched in the final moments to whisper, "I'll return…"

The arena faded as I went back to the real world. A warm ember of pride filled me. For the first time, I finally triumphed. From a spark, a flame. The fire of victory has emerged.

**Again, holy shit. That was fun. Now for another 4 months of radio silence. See y'all then.****Burningbeast**


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh my god. This is finally done. I'm so tired. This is one of the most exhausting things I've ever written. Combine that with personal stuff and I'm just exhausted. Roll that sweet, sweet film.**

I skid along the hard packed earth. My blades digging into the ground to kill my momentum. The last blow had sent me flying, and I rose from the ground to rush my opponent. The generic green avatar hunkered down behind their oversized shields in a resort for defense. Laughing at the predictable move, I dragged my blades along the ground to generate sparks and fill my move gauge. I looked pretty awesome in the process, and I gleamed inside as I yelled two familiar words. "Golden Retaliation!" Fire consumed my blades as I knocked aside the green's shields. With a well placed slash, I relieved the poor soul of their head. The duel ended, and I smiled again; but this time, it had a hint of insanity… I found this to be surprisingly therapeutic.

I re-emerged in the real world less than a second from when I left it. Acceleration, the stasis Brain Burst creates, is really weird when you think about it. I spend an hour in the program, fighting, and it only takes less than two seconds in real life. I had to brush those thoughts off my mental desk as I rose from the bench to meander to the park's fountain. I stared at my reflection in the water. Looking happier and healthier than I remembered; but one detail never changed. My left eye's coloring. The dark brown had morphed into a piercing amethyst. The color of my other eye. That detail bugged me a lot. From what I could tell, no one else who had Brain Burst had heterochromia… And once more, my mind flashed back.

_A featureless room. _

_The limitless expanse._

_A kneeling figure. Their arms chained behind them. _

_One half golden armour, scuffed and dented. _

_The other, an uncovered torso pockmarked with wounds_

_He was beaten within an inch of his life. _

_The twisted parody of Golden Edge and Lucius Veren._

_"Blade Shift"_

I shook my head. Pushing even more thoughts aside, knowing well, that, thinking about it; would only give me more questions than answers. I whispered quietly, "Burst Link."

The world slammed to a halt. I sighed and opened the matchmaking list. I idly scrolled through the names, searching for one that would catch my eye. I sighed. Nothing, not a single goddamn one. No one at my skill level was in the area. There are at least 150,000 linkers in this city. How?! Why?! How in HELL is that possible! I broke the silence of the accelerated world with an angry roar. The sound echoed through the blue tinged atmosphere. I stared at my frozen body. "Don't give me that look."

Those words made me laugh; in the most literal sense, I was talking to myself. My anger now forgotten, I looked at the rusted metal of the menu. My gaze drawn to the status tab. With a gentle poke I opened the sub menu.

Name: Golden Edge

Color: Metal

Level: 2

Stats:

HP: 160

Attack: 80

Ranged Attack: N/A

Defense: 65

Speed: 90

Basic Attacks:

Slash

Stab.

Special Move:

Golden Retaliation: a move that ignores defensive buffs and heals the attacker by 50% of damage dealt.

Blade Shift: -ERROR-

Output:

01000001 01010110 01000001 01001100 01001111 01001110 00111010 00100000 01110101 01101110 01101100 01101111 01100011 01101011 01100101 01100100

I stopped dead in my tracks. Blade Shift… Was that supposed to be an ability? Error? What does that even mean? What's with all the ones and zeros? I resisted the urge to scream… Right when I thought I had a handful of answers I just got even more questions. "Burst Out!"

The world grinded into normal speed. Or is it me decelerating back to real time? Oh well… I slowly left the park, ignoring the eyes drilling into my back. At this point I didn't care what anyone else thought of me. I no longer cared, I had grown beyond that. My life was my own and no one else could tell me how to live…

I walked into the world with a smile on my face. I looked behind me and laughed, even outside of the otherworld. I wouldn't abandon my dream. My shadow stretches out at my heels. Shadowy blades seem to shine in the afternoon sun. I would not abandon my dream. It is my life.

I will take aim. I will shoot for the stars. And I will not miss.

EXCALIBUR: Unlocked

**This chapter may be a bit short, but honestly this is kind of an expositional or filler type of chapter. So if like the three or four people who actually read this don't enjoy it. I don't really care. Like I've said, I've moved on.**


End file.
